One Wild Night

835  The Talk Show (2)

“Oh, my God! I can’t believe I just told the whole world I was a stripper,” she whispered, her voice thick with emotion.

Candace considered this, a flicker of hope rekindled in her eyes. Perhaps the shame she’d carried for so long was misplaced.

“And they didn’t judge you,” Andy pointed out, “In fact, Alicia seemed to think it was empowering.”

Candace considered this, a flicker of hope rekindled in her eyes.  Perhaps the shame she’d carried for so long was misplaced.

“You both did so well,” Harry said warmly, “You were amazing.”

Candace offered him a watery smile.  “Thanks. I never thought I’d be telling my whole life story on national television.”

“Neither did I,” Andy admitted, “But here we are,” Andy said and she rose when Alicia signalled her over to join her and Eric.

Matt, who had been grinning from ear to ear throughout the interview, came forward took Candace’s other hand. “You were absolutely incredible. I’m so proud of you.”

Candace’s cheeks flushed a rosy pink. Despite the audience, Matt’s words sent a shiver down her spine. Maybe, just maybe, going public with their relationship wasn’t such a bad idea after all.

“Why? Because she just told the world about your relationship?” Harry asked dryly.

“That. And because she is incredible,” Matt said without taking his gaze away from Candace, while Harry shifted his attention to Jade.

“Enjoying the show?” He asked and she shook her head.

“I’m feeling too anxious to enjoy it. I can’t imagine how you must all feel if I’m this strung out. I’m going to give you a massage later, okay?”

“Alright lovebirds,” Andy teased, nudging them playfully as she joined them again. “Save the mush for later.  We have a show to finish,” Andy said to Jade and Matt as she sat down.

A fresh wave of nervous energy surged through Candace as the commercial break ended, but this time it was different. It was a nervous excitement, a thrill of anticipation. She was ready to tell her story, the whole unfiltered truth, no matter how messy or painful it might be.

Eric and Alicia reappeared, their smiles wider than ever as the red light flickered back on.

“Alright folks, Welcome back! We are still here with the Jonas siblings.” Boomed Eric.

“We have a lot more to unpack here. Candace, before the break, you were about to tell us how you ended up at the orphanage.  We’re all eager to hear your story,” Alicia said, wasting no time in steering the conversation back to Candace’s story.

Candace took a deep breath, stealing a glance at Matt’s encouraging smile. She straightened her shoulders and met Alicia’s gaze. “As I was saying before,” she began, “I met Matt. Don’t ask me how. It’s not part of the story,” Candace said before either Eric or Alicia could ask her, and they both smiled and gave her a nod to go on.

“I told Matt about our situation, and because he wanted to keep us safe, he reached out to his best friend’s sister who is a brilliant lawyer, Jade Hank. She coincidentally happened to be the lawyer who handled the case that sent my baby daddy to jail,” Candace said and Alicia looked stunned by the revelation.

“Oh, my! What a coincidence,” Alicia said and Eric nodded.

“And that’s not the best part of it. Jade Hank also happens to be the sister to Thomas Hank who is Harry’s best friend,” Candace added, stunning them even more since they were yet to make the connection.

“Things like this makes us believe it’s a small world,” Eric said in amazement.

Candace spent the next couple of minutes recounting the details of how Harry had joined Jade in helping her even without knowing she was his sister.

How her and her son had ended up staying with Tom and how her baby daddy had sent her a package containing details about her past.

“Wait! Wasn’t he in jail? Did he get released?” Alicia asked and Candace smiled.

“I’m not sure about that. It was a gift. He had it delivered. Said he had been working on it before he got arrested,”Candace said since they had agreed not to give out details of Jero and the cartel since giving out too many details would make the remaining members of the cartel think they were a threat.

“You mean he helped you find your family?” Alicia asked and Candace nodded.

“In a way. But it seemed my family already found me before I found them,” Candace said, and Eric turned to Harry.

“Before she tells us how she ended up at the orphanage, how about you tell us how you found her?” Eric asked with interest.

“It’s simple. Sara showed up wanting to meet me. On hearing that my biological mother was alive. I asked my dad why he lied, and he confessed that she abandoned me when I was a week old. I also got to learn I had a twin sister who supposedly died at birth. Upon further investigation we realized she didn’t die as our father was made to believe, but she was actually sold at birth,” Harry said, earning him a gasp from both Alicia and the crowd.

“Sold? Sara Walker sold her daughter? Candace?” Alicia asked, turning to look at Candace with sad eyes.

“If you followed the news of what happened to Wilson Peterson a couple of weeks ago, you would better understand how I ended up at the orphanage. The couple who bought me from Sara was Gregory Peterson and his wife,” Candace said stunning everyone once again.

“What? It’s all related? This leaves me to wonder, if everything that has happened in the last couple of weeks is related or purely coincidence,” Eric said and Harry shrugged.

“Maybe it’s just karma doing its thing at the right time,” Harry said with a grin.

“Oh, Candace. All of these must have been so tough on you,” Alicia said, and Candace  forced a smile.

“Well, it wasn’t exactly easy getting to know that I was sold by my biological mother, lost my supposed adoptive parents and got abandoned at the orphanage,” Candace admitted, her voice thick with emotion. “And finding out Sara was searching for me, not because she was remorseful and wanted a reunion, but because she needed a piece of my liver, that was sort of hard to swallow,” Candace said, and Alicia extended a hand to her.

“Of course. I can only imagine how that must have made you feel. You are such a strong woman, Candace. And I’m sorry you’ve been through so much struggle,” Alicia said softly as Candace struggled not to cry.

“How did all of these make you feel, Andy? How did you feel about Candace finding her biological family?” Eric asked so that Candace would be able to compose herself.

Andy smiled, “I’m still reeling from the surprise and joy of it. At first I was a bit skeptical, you know? I was like, what if they don’t accept me? What if they don’t have room for me? But after meeting Harry and our dad, I don’t see it as Candace finding her biological family. I think it’s our family. It feels as though I found where I belong too. And maybe my own biological family might have left me at the orphanage for me to find my true family. Oh, fuck! I think I’m going to cry,” Andy said as her voice hitched, and they all laughed, while Candace squeezed her hand.

“Why were you not present at I-Global’s anniversary dinner party? Or were you there but just didn’t feature in the photos?” Eric asked and Andy smiled.

“Nah. I wasn’t there. Someone had to stay back at home with our dad and Jamal. I offered to do so. You know, I’m trying to win brownie points with the old man so I can be his favorite,” Andy joked and they all laughed.

They had all agreed not to say anything about Andy being abducted and being away during the initial reunion, in order to simply things and to not expose Cassidy to whoever was possibly looking.

“Harry, what about you? How do you feel having two older sisters?” Alicia asked and Harry grinned.

“You know how you don’t have something and you’re fine? And then you suddenly have it and you begin to wonder how you’ve lived without it your whole life? That’s how I feel. I feel incredibly lucky to have these two exceptionally beautiful and strong women in my life as my sisters. And I got the most brilliant and handsome seven year old in the world as my nephew. It’s amazing, really,” Harry said with a heartfelt smile.

“I have to ask, how did you feel knowing about their past? I mean, seeing how well you’ve lived and how they had to go through so much?” Eric asked, and Harry drew a deep breath.

“I felt sad that they had to pass through so much struggle, and proud of them for staying strong. I believe they did what they had to do to survive and take care of each other, and they did a damn good job. I’m proud of them. I’m proud of the women they are and I’m proud to call them my sisters,” Harry said and this time both Candace and Andy became teary.

“Candace and Andy, what has been the best part of being part of the Jonas family for you individually?” Eric asked and Candace smiled.

“The quality of people I’ve come to be connected to. Before now, Jade Hank was mostly a lawyer but now she is a friend and sister to me. And I value her friendship so much,” Candace said, meeting Jade’s gaze, and Jade blew her a kiss, “And then there is my cousin, Lucy Perry….”

“Lucy Perry? As in Lucinda Perry? Thomas Hank’s girlfriend? How? I had no idea she was related to you, Harry,” Eric asked in disbelief and Candace closed her eyes when she realized she had made yet another revelation that wasn’t part of their plan.

“Well, that’s not part of this interview,” Harry said with a small smile since he knew very well that Lucy wouldn’t want to draw such attention to herself.

“We did say this interview is supposed to be in series. Maybe we can bring back Candace and Matt for another episode, and maybe convince Thomas Hank and Lucinda Perry to be our guests here,” Eric said with a resigned smile.

“I wish you good luck with that,” Harry said and Eric grinned.

“We will talk about that off camera. I’m sure you can convince them all on my behalf,” Eric said and Harry chuckled.

“As interesting as this episode has been, it’s time to call it a wrap. That was an incredible journey, Candace,” Eric said, his booming voice softened with empathy.  “You both are truly remarkable young women.”

Candace’s eyes welled up with tears, a mixture of relief, joy, and gratitude.  She had finally found her voice, and the world had listened.

“Thank you, Eric,” Candace replied, her voice trembling slightly as she wiped a stray tear from her cheek. “It means a lot to hear that.”

“Thank you for having us,” Andy said with a polite smile.

Alicia leaned forward, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.  “There’s still so much we don’t know! What’s your relationship with Sara Walker like now? And I’m sure everyone wants to hear the juicy details about you and Matt Swift! I’m hoping we can convince you to come again. Until then, we will close today’s show with Andy’s performance. Andy, what’s your music name?”

Andy grinned, “Brandy,” she said excitedly, happy that they were giving her the platform to advertise herself to their millions of viewers.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you, the latest superstar in the country, Brandy. Do not forget to tune in same time next week,” Eric said before letting Andy take over the stage.

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